It’s been a rocky start to the offseason for the Cleveland Browns, and that has continued on Friday morning. After the team made the polarizing decision to hire former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken as their new head coach, it appears that move has officially resulted in them losing their defensive coordinator, Jim Schwartz.
After being a finalist for the Browns’ head coach job, Schwartz was reportedly upset that he was passed over in favor of Monken, and that led to him resigning from his post with the team. Now, Monken needs to find a new defensive coordinator for his coaching staff, and immediately after news of Monken’s departure came to light, a pair of frontrunners quickly emerged.
Browns Linked to Texans Coaches Dino Vasso, Cory Undlin for DC Opening
The Browns’ search for a new head coach was complicated, to say the least. With a grueling process reportedly put in place for candidates, coaches began to drop like flies, which led to a true frontrunner failing to emerge. Schwartz eventually became the frontrunner by default, but at the last second, Monken managed to wrestle the job away from him.
Unsurprisingly, Schwartz wasn’t happy with this development and immediately made it clear that he intended to leave Cleveland. While the team wanted to keep him in place as Monken’s defensive coordinator since he was still under contract, Schwartz refused to change his mind and ultimately resigned on Friday morning.
Monken has likely been preparing for this outcome for a while now, and it sounds like he may already have his eye on a pair of Houston Texans coaches who could come in and replace Schwartz. Shortly after he resigned, the Browns were linked to Texans’ defensive backs coach, Dino Vasso, and their defensive passing game coordinator, Cory Undlin.
“With hopes of keeping the system together for their talented group, the Browns may look to a couple of assistants on the staff of Jim Schwartz disciple Matt Burke — Dino Vasso and Cory Undlin,” Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported in a post on X.
Should the Browns Hire Dino Vasso or Cory Undlin?
GettyThe Browns have immediately been linked to Texans coaches Dino Vasso and Cory Undlin as potential Jim Schwartz replacements
Guys on Houston’s coaching staff quickly have emerged as potential candidates for Cleveland’s defensive coordinator gig. That’s because the Texans’ defensive coordinator, Matt Burke, has spent much of his career working alongside Schwartz. Even though he’s gone now, the Browns largely want to keep Schwartz’s defensive system in place in 2026 and beyond.
Neither Vasso nor Undlin has worked with Monken before, although Undlin did spend four years with Cleveland from 2005 to 2008, which could give him the inside track to land this gig. It is still very early in the process, but the Browns already know what they are looking for in their defensive coordinator search, which should make things easier for Monken. Now, he just needs to find his top candidate, and these two Texans coaches will be worth keeping tabs on.
Browns Linked to Pair of Texans Coaches as Potential Jim Schwartz Replacements